Testimony: Vernacular Art of the African-American South

With more than 100 pieces by 27 self-taught artists, Testimony: Vernacular Art of the African-American South highlights the Ronald and June Shelp Collection, supplementing a traveling exhibition co-curated by Harlem's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Exhibitions International. Mary Proctor's beautiful pastiche of paint and broken pottery on a wood door, Thornton Dial Sr.'s dreamlike watercolor and graphite works, Leroy Almon's painted and carved wood depiction of four notorious U.S. assassinations and Purvis Young's alternative biblical scenes are among the 171 illustrations (101 in full color). Scholars including Kinshasa H. Conwill, director emeritus of Harlem's Studio Museum, and Arthur C. Danto, art critic for the Nation, contribute essays on social, political and craft-related aspects of the work. ( Feb.)